As high speed Internet access becomes more common and affordable, the Internet is emerging as a new platform for online-based applications and more interactive content. For example, online-based or web-based electronic mail (e-mail) accounts have been available for some time and have provided users convenient and ready access to their e-mails from a web browser. These web-based e-mail accounts typically provide a set of action controls in a one or two lined toolbar including functions/actions, such as “send,” “reply,” “reply all,” or the like.
While the controls in the toolbar have been useful, several inconveniences continue to exist. For example, the toolbar usually occupies a pre-determined amount of space on the web page, but that space also should not be too much on the web page such that the actual content (i.e., e-mail message content) should be given the maximum amount of viewable area to the user. With these considerations, current toolbar on the web page typically could only provide some of the most commonly used controls. In order for the user to use additional controls, the user typically needs to navigate to other areas, such as “Options” or other “account setting areas” to learn about other controls or functionalities provided by the service provider.
In addition, the user may also install on a local computer a toolbar that attaches to a web browser application. For example, it is known that the user may download a toolbar as an “add-on application” to the web browser application. The downloaded toolbar provides an expedited access or authentication to a particular server or a convenient online search or query. The toolbar may also provide other controls or tools, such as “highlighting text,” “search with the web page,” or the like.
While these downloadable toolbars provide directed or particular tools for the user, they nevertheless occupy viewable area on the web browser application even when the users do not wish to use these added tools or functionalities. When the user visits one of the web-based e-mail account service, the spaces occupied by the downloadable toolbar and the toolbar on the web page further limit the amount of content viewable areas available to the user.